The Evidence of Absence

Today's post will be both brief and to the point... because less is more.
;-)

"The great majority of mankind are satisfied with appearances, as though they were realities, and are often more influenced by the things that seem than by those that are."

- Niccolo Machiavelli.

In a recent post, I highlighted some of my own life lessons as I celebrated my 33rd birthday. Accordingly, one of the most profound things I've come to learn in adulthood, and what alludes many, is to always listen to what others are not saying.

In essence, things are rarely what they seem to be. Interestingly, a person's true character is best revealed at a time of crisis. This is the time people are without the luxury of making appearances or being pretentious.
What is more interesting is that we still miss this because we often are preoccupied with only that which we seek, and in so doing, we disregard all else that is openly available while we remain blinded by what we've singularly focused on.

At this point, it is worth noting that most things in life are best and most easily found only when we stop looking.

In sum, the best way to understand most things is to overcome our default fixation with the obvious. Listen to what is not being said. Perceive in the mind much more than what the eye sees. Ask why not, don't just stop at why. Read between the lines.

Finally, I've come to realize that one very good way of understanding oneself is to carefully consider what one is not, what one cannot be and ultimately, what one cannot willingly let oneself be.

Almost is near always very far from Done.

Many things have been said and written about the dangers of assumption. It has a positive component to it, but assuming also involves negligence. It is essentially a failure to ask "What if?"

Back in October 2008, something totally unexpected changed my life. The whole incident greatly irked me, but taught me an enduring lesson that I dare not forget, at a time when life actually offers no guarantees.

This morning, someone reminded me of an old Kikuyu saying/proverb:

"Ni iguaga i kanua."

Basically, it means that a piece of meat can fall to the ground if when you already have it in your mouth and are busy chewing it.

Eating meat was such a valued thing to the Kikuyu community back in the day. I bet it still is.
This saying does point to the fact that things can actually change even at a time when one least expects it. An equivalent English proverb is

There is many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip.

That said, things can take a totally unexpected turn at the worst possible time. After all, why is it that an Internet connection seemingly always drops when your download is 99% complete?

Have a great week!

The Last Mile

"There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip."

- English proverb

Today's post was inspired by some articles I recently read concerning the cost of Internet access in Kenya, which has not seen significant price drops years after the landing of several sub-marine fiber optic cables. Prior to this, there were numerous promises of faster, more accessible and cheaper Internet. The promises have simply remained promises, reason being that the last mile costs to the service providers have so far remained unchanged.

Before you feel like I am digressing and talking about something that would more appropriately feature in Connect eMagazine's Telco Talk, let me get straight to the point.

The Irony of Life

Every time we embark on anything in life, how it starts naturally determines how it may end up, assuming all factors remain constant. When it is a good beginning, then it all proceeds and ends well.
For a lengthy and engaging endeavor, nothing beats the good feeling of that light at the end of the tunnel, an indication that satisfaction and achievement are nigh. However, as we have previously highlighted, life has a way of throwing some nasty surprises at us. Alanis Morissette finds this trait rather ironic.


Consistency, no assumptions
At this point, the question that begs asking is: Must things suddenly change at the last minute? For those who believe in destiny, Is this the nature of fate? And more important, What can be done to forestall this?

The answer lies in two fairly common words: assumption and consistency. Just because things have been going on all well sans any hitch is in no way an assurance that such welcome progress will be maintained till conclusion.
Human beings are creatures of habit, naturally opting to believe in and depend on the repetition of what has happened in the past. In our minds, we simply assume that it is tried and tested, that nothing can possibly go wrong. This is primarily the reason why disclaimers exist. Assumption is undoubtedly the mother of all screw-ups.
We should therefore not assume things.

In lieu of assumptions, we then need to go the extra mile [yeah, that one exists before you get to the end], and remain consistent. No need getting sloppy just because you have done 95%. Do not drop your guard just because you are now in your drive way. The contract does not become binding unless and until the signatures have been appended on the dotted lines.


So much can happen in a very short time period. A day is indeed a very long time, not just in the life of a politician, but in every single thing in life.
There is need to learn from these simple truths. Otherwise, we may learn the hard way [as one Argonaut did] that there actually are many slips between the cup and the lip.